This month, my husband and I will celebrate 15 years of marriage.
And “celebrate” is the appropriate word here. If you’ve been married for any length of time, you know it’s a lot of work, so when you hit those five, 10, 15, 20 and beyond milestones, there is major cause for celebration!
Of course, COVID life has shifted the way we celebrate many occasions these days. If you have kids, even more factors play a role in how we can commemorate our special days: how old they are, what time of year it is, etc. But the truth remains: Milestones should be celebrated.
To help you brainstorm and/or plan ahead, below are a few ideas on celebrating wedding anniversaries:
4 Ways to Celebrate Wedding Anniversaries
FIVE YEARS
At our five-year mark, we had a one-year-old, and getting a babysitter was a big deal. At the time, I was staying home with my firstborn and honestly, we hardly ever had anyone else watch her. My parents took her for the night and my husband Daniel and I went to a really nice dinner.
See, date nights were not really a thing at this point in our marriage, so a nice dinner out was a big way to celebrate five years. I’ve noticed this is common among many of my friends. A five-year anniversary is amazing, but with littles in tow, just a night out or overnight trip to a nearby bed and breakfast will do!
10 YEARS
To us, this was a big deal. We wanted to do it up big, and we did! By this time, we were used to a babysitter, so it wasn’t just a night…We did a whole week to ourselves in the Bahamas. Yep, we did that, and it was amazing. While we were away, it truly made us realize how important it was to spend time alone. We can get so sucked into the day-to-day chaos that we don’t take time to just be in each other’s company. This trip made us realize we needed more time just for us.
In addition to the week-long trip, we got someone to take anniversary photos. We recreated our engagement pictures but added our kids, as well! It was a beautiful memory and a lovely way to incorporate the past and present.
If you’re feeling the wedding anniversary/engagement photo idea, find a local photographer here to help make it happen!
15 YEARS
Alright, friends. Here’s a milestone that you really want to get out and celebrate, but lives are busy and “Didn’t we just go to the Bahamas?” thoughts settle in. For us, with COVID still happening and travel being tricky, we are good with a simple night to ourselves again. This month, we’ll have our girls stay at my parents for the weekend as we enjoy dinner and movies at home, and honestly, we’ll probably do some house projects. I’m sure you laugh, but only because you know that could be you and your partner, too. It’s okay, we can all laugh at our adulting together.
20 YEARS
I am very excited about this anniversary! We are planning a vow renewal and our girls are ecstatic about this one. When we explained that it was basically another wedding, one they could be in, they were sold. Plus, we may have said we want to have the ceremony on a beach in Hawaii…I’m pretty sure they were mostly excited about the beach. So this is the plan—we’ve got five years to make it happen, pending no major worldwide pandemics!
What are some memorable ways you’ve celebrated your wedding anniversary? Or what do you plan to do in the future? What has worked and what hasn’t? I’d love to know!
